Undershirt



(No Model.)

W. F; KNEIP.

UNDERSHIRT.

No. 472,672. PatentedApr. 12, 1892.

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YUNITEDA STATES VILLIAM F. KNEIP, OF YPSILNTI, MICHIGAN.

PATENT OEEICE.

UNDERSHIRT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 472,672, dated April 12, 1892.

Application tiled October 11, 1890. Serial No. 367,804. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. KNEIP, a resident of Ypsilanti, in the county of Washtenaw and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Undergarments; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in undergarments, and more particularly to that class of garments which are made from elastic or ribbed knit or woven fabric. Undergarments of this class have commonly been made of front and rear body-pieces suitably joined at their side and top margins to form the body portion of the garment. ln garments thus constructed the sleeve has been made of a piece of fabric having its edges joined together at their side margins and attached at one end to the main body portion of the garment. In this prior construction the pieces of knit ribbed fabric forming the body portion of the garment are made with the ribs or rows of stitches extending lengthwise of said pieces, so that when said pieces are joined together the ribs extend vertically from the top to the bottom of the garment. It has been found that in the use of the garments thus made the portions of said bodypieces which form the shoulders of the garment are very liable to stretch and pull-out of shape, so as to render the garment loose and ill fitting at the shoulders, it being a wellknown characteristic of ribbed knit goods that its elasticity in a direction at right angles to the ribs or rows of stitches is much greater than in a direction lengthwise of said ribs.

It is found necessary in order to produce a close-fitting and comfortable garment to form the pieces which compose the main body portion with these ribs vor rows of stitches arrangedyertically, and in all such garments as heretofore made these body-pieces have been carried up over the shoulder and joined at their upper margins along the top thereof but a great objection to the use of such goods has heretofore existed from the fact that by this form of` construction the fabric isleft free to stretch,and is therefore liable to stretch and become loose at the shoulders, while it fails to keep the sleeves properly in place, inasmuch as the elasticity of the fabric across the top of the shoulder allows the seams at the upper ends of the sleeves to fall from the shoulders downwardly over the arms.

It has been proposed to construct a knitted shirt having its upper part formed bya piece made integral with the sleeves, and which extends below the armholes both at the front and rear of the garment, the' ribs in such piece being arranged longitudinally and continuous with those of the sleeves, so that the elasticity of said piece is mainly transverse or such as to allow the piece to stretch vertically. In a construction of this kind the fabric at the front and rear of the garment, from the neck opening downwardly to a horizontal line passing below the sleeves, will stretch much more easily in a vertical than in a horizontal 'direction, so that the upper front and rear parts of the garment are not adapted by their elasticity to make the garmet [it closelyaround made with the ribs extending lengthwise or vertically and as heretofore, and said pieces are extended upwardly to the neck-opening in front and nearly to the neck-opening behind and are attached at their side edges to the sleeves. Between the upper ends of the said main pieces is inserted a transverse strip of fabric which extends from shoulder to shoulder across the back of the neck and is curved or shaped to form the rear parts of the latter opening, and is attached at its ends to or made integral with the sleeves, the ribs in said transverse strip being arranged horizontally to the strip, or transversely with reference to the main parts of the garment, so

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2 maeva that the strip is relatively non-elastic longitudinally, and by its attachment to the sleeves holds the latter in place and keeps the shoulders of the garment in proper shape. At the same time, the said transverse strip being of a width only suicient to extend at its rear margin past the neck-opening and to be properly secured at its ends to the top ofthe sleeve, said strip is not so wide as to afford an unde sii-able degree of elasticity therein in a direction to allow an undue stretchingofthe shoulder part of the garment. This construction, therefore, while affording a desirable crossstay or non-elastic connection between the upper ends of the sleeves across the shoulders ot' the garment, at the same time provides for the necessary elasticity in and close tit of the other parts of the garment adjacent to the shoulders.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, Figure l is a front view ol' an undergarmeutembodyingmyinvention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a transverse piece of fabric extending across the shoulder and` made continuous with the sleeves of the garment. Fig. 3 is a plan View of amodiiied form of the said transverse piece.

In said drawings, A indicates the bodyportion of the garment, composed, as herein shown, of front pieces A A and rear pieces A2 A2.

B B indicate pieces of fabric which in this instance form both the transverse shoulderpieees B and the sleeves C C of the garment.

D indicates the neekband or collar. As more clearly shown in Fig. 2, each piece B is made of a narrow strip B of ribbed knit fabric, made integral with one of the sleeves and formed with its sides substantially p'arallel, as shown at b b and b2 b3. At the inner end of the piece B', or the end of the same adjacent tothe neck oi the garment, said piece is properly shaped to tit around the neck, as shown at b3 b4.

rlhe pieces B B are united at their inner ends and together constitute a transverse shoulda-strip), which extends from sleeve to sleeve, and havinglittle longitudinal elasticity from the fact that the ribs therein run lengthwise thereof, serve to keep the shoulder parts oi' the garment from stretching and to hold the same in shape. The opposite orouter end cf each of said pieces B B is widened, as shown at Z1 b5 and b2 ZJ, to form the sleeve C and the margins b D and b2 U", suitably i11- clined or curved to adapt them for joining the upper side margins of the main body portions A A2 where the sleeve is joined to the body of the garment. The side margins D567 and b DS of the pieces B B are properlynariowed to give the desired form to the sleeves when said margins are joined. The margins h b of the shoulder portions B of the pieces B B are joined to the upper edges of the rear body-pieces A2 A2, so as to form a seam d2, extending across the back of the garment from shoulder to shoulder. Similarly the front margins b2 bs of said pieces B are joined to the upper edges of the front body portions A A', forming the seams a and a.

The neckband or collar is attached to the margins b3 b'1 and b3 b4 of the pieces B B', forming a continuous seam d, and to short curved margins at the upper portions of the front pieces A A', as shown in Fig. l of the d rawi ugs.

It is clearly obvious that the front and rear portions of the garmentmay each be made of a single piece of fabric, said pieces being properly shaped and joined together along their vertical side margins. It is furtherlnore obvious that both of the sleeves and both shoulder-pieces may be formed from a single piece of fabric, the same having both its end portions widened and properly shaped to form the sleeves when the side margins thereof are joined together and its middle portion narrowed to form the shoulder-pieces, and having its front margin properly curved to fit the neck. This form of construction is illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, by which the continuation of said piece B in the manner set forth is clearly indicated.

Vifhere the transverse shoulder-pieces are made separate from each other and each part made con tinuous with one slevce, the short end margins b b4 of said pieces B B are joined together, forming the rear vertical seam c. Furthermore, it is obvious that the shoulderpieces may be made integral with each other with the ribs or rows of stitches extending lengthwise thereof and the sleeves each made separate and attached in the ordinary manner. Such form of the shoulder pieces is shown in Fig. 3. The shoulder-pieces'may be made narrower than shown without departure from inyinvention. A main advantage gained by this construction is that by the employment of the transverse shoulder-pieces arranged with the ribs or rows of stitches extending lengthwise of said pieces or from the neckband to each shoulder the shoulder portions oi' the garment are rendered practically inelastic, while by reason of the formation of the front and rear body-pieces with the ribs or rows of stitches extending vertically, or from top to bottom of the garment, the necessary elasticityv in the body portion of the garment is preserved and a comfortable and close tit insured, while there is no liability of the fabric pulling or stretching out of shape and beeoming'loose and ill-fitting at the shoulders.

Having described my invention, what I claim isl. The herein-described garment of elastic ribbed knit or woven fabric, the same consisting of front and rear vertically-ribbed body-pieces extending upwardly to the neckopening in front and nearly to the neck-opening behind, a narrow transverse shoulderstrip located between the upper ends of the body-pieces and extending across the garment at the rear of the neck-opening, said ICO IIO

strip being out away upon its forward margin to form the rear part of the latter, and sleeves attached to said body-pieces and to the ends of the said transverse strip, the ribs in said -transverse strip being arranged 1ongitudinally or transverse to the ribs ot' the body-pieces, substantially as described.

2. The herein-described garment of elastic or ribbed knit or woven fabric, the same consisting of front and rear vertically-ribbed body-pieces extendingupwardly to the neckopening in front and nearly to the neck-opening behind, a narrow transverse shoulderstrip located between the upper ends of the body-pieces and extending across the garment at the rear of the neck-opening, said strip being cut away upon the forward margin to form the rear part of the neck-opening and having its ribs arranged longitudinally or transverse to the ribs of the body-pieces,

and sleeves made integral with the said shoulder-strip and secured to the body-pieces below the said strip, substantially as described.

3. A shirt or like garment of elastic knitted material, the body whereof is highly elastic across the bust portion from the neck-opening downward and is formed with a space upon the shoulders, said shirt being provided with knitted sleeves having formed in piece therewith extensions for the shoulders of the shirt, said extensions being comparatively inelastic in the direction of their length and elastic in opposite direction.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention l afiix my signature in presence ot' two witnesses.

WlLLlAM F.'KNEIP. Witnesses:

JNO. B. CoLVAN, W. L. PACK. 

